Rivals Regret
by FujiwaraMaiko
Summary: It's her last year to volunteer. She's going in one way or another. She has to prove she will be a better victor than her sister ever will. She's in the Hunger Games now, and she's gone in without knowing what she's going to lose and gain. CatoxOC


District Two.

How to describe the place I live ... Comfortable? Cool? Calm? Collected? Wealthy? Full of people willing to risk their necks for honour and pride? Although, I guess I can't be one to talk, I'm planning on volunteering myself tomorrow at the Reaping. That is, if no one beats me to it.

" Masika! Hurry up and get down here! We'll be late!" My friend, Chive, yells to me from the bottom of my stairs. Of course, the dance!

It isn't really an official thing, I don't even know if it's perfectly legal. But, we raise and export Peacekeepers, and everyone goes to this dance. Well, maybe dance isn't the perfect word for it. It's more like celebrating another Reaping. The long wait is finally over and two lucky people get to run into an arena and claim the glory that belongs to District Two. For the occasion, it's for teenagers fourteen through eighteen and all you do is show up and have a good time. Pretty simple - dancing, laughing, singing, even some food. All in all, just like the other ones I've gone to. Sometimes, a victor will show up and join us. Usually, it's a victor that puts this all on for us, considering they're the richest in the district. I know Brutus has been throwing them for the last couple of years though. He never disapoints.

I shove on a pair of shoes and practically run down the stairs to meet up with Chive. I reach the bottom of the stairs to see her checking herself out in the mirror. I sigh as she twirls, her long brown-red hair twisting around her. As much as she's my best friend, it's a little tiresome to see her checking herself out all the time. " Chive Moriotic!"

She giggles and turns on her heel to look at me. " Yes?" she replies.

" Hurry up, we'll be late!" I say, impersonating her voice from earlier with a smirk. She smacks my arm playfully, then smiles at my clothes.

" Red really is your colour!" she remarks, taking in my ruffled blouse.

" Being a shopkeeper has its advantages!" I wink. We head out of my house and down the path to Victor's Village, where the dance is usually held. We recognize a lot of girls and boys from the Academy, a few boys winking 'Hello' and a few girls giggling 'What's up?' as they pass us.

" Say, Masika, do you think Cato will be there? At the dance I mean," she says in a low voice.

For someone as dangerous as Chive, she can't even utter to the boy that she likes him! More like unhealthily obsessed with him, actually. I put up with her dilusions of romance though because I'd hate to crush her dreams by telling her that he doesn't even know her first name. Sometimes, she'd stay with me in my house for the night just to get a glimpse of him in his window.

And yes, Cato just happens to be my neighbour. And yes, our bedroom windows are directly across from each other. How unfortunate for me.

" Cato's always there. You would know, you spy on him everytime he's here," I snicker. She slaps a hand over my mouth to keep me from saying more.

" Masika Esryn! Will you keep your mouth shut for once?" she whispers fiercly in my ear. I can't help but laugh at her. She overreacts way too much. I'm a little mean because I torment her so.

" Sorry, Chive, but your reaction is the best!" I grin. I spot Cado a few yards away, his hair blowing in the breeze and his eyes sparkling. I whisper in her ear," Ooh, and look who's coming!"

Immediately she starts fussing over her hair and telling me to shut up. I'm not even saying anything! I can't help but giggle at her. " Chive, calm down, it's just Ca-" I start to say but get cut off by Chive slapping a hand over my mouth as he walks by.

He takes a brief second to stop and say, "Why, _hello_ ladies," he says in his normal, womanizing voice. I glance at Chive and from the dumb grin on her face she's completely over the moon. Cato continues on walking but she forgets that her hand is over my mouth. I bite her as a reminder.

" Ow!" she cries out, yanking her hand away from me. " You're as bad as Enobaria! Or your sister. Seriously, ow!"

Right. Lyme Esryn. Victor of the Games that were over a generation ago, around the same time Brutus won his Games. Lyme Esryn, my big sister. Lyme, who I'm always compared to. Lyme, who is over six feet tall meanwhile I'm just five foot ten. Lyme, who everyone would pick over me if it was a decision between the two of us.

She's a lot older than I am. She's middle-aged, and I'm only eighteen. I was more of an accident than anything. I wasn't supposed to be born. All my parents ever cared about was Lyme. Now it's just my mother left, father died in a mining accident. But she forgets I'm here when my sister visits from her house in Victor's Village.

I glare at Chive. " What did I say about mentioning Lyme?"

" I never did get why you hated me so much," Lyme's voice says coming up behind me. Because of training, annoyance, or the fact that I can't stand her, I turn around and bring my fist to greet the left side of her face. " Too slow," she sighs, catching my hand and twisting my arm behind my back.

I let out a slight cry which quickly turns into a menacing growl. " Lyme!"

She grins. " Not my fault you're so slow."

" Well, I'm fast and tough enough to take you on, psycho," I glare at her.

She snorts," Yeah, whatever Masika."

" Hey, sister cat fight!" I hear a guy call out. I glance over at the crowd beginning to develop around Lyme and I. On the front lines are Chive and Cato.

My sister smiles at Cato," Hey Cato. Shouldn't you be training?" That's right. Lyme helps train at the Academy.

" Nah, today's my free night," he smirks. " I'll have plenty of time to fight in the Games."

This sets me off even more. Lyme is older than I am! She's practically flirting with him! I don't care if that wasn't her intention, it pisses me off! I might as well take advantage with this crowd. I'll show that if anyone takes my place at the Reaping tomorrow, they'll have hell to pay.

While Lyme is busy doing whatever with Cato, I turn around to face her (unfortunately twisting my arm more in the process), wrench myself out of her grip, and before she even registers I'm out of her grip, a bring up my leg and kick her across the face rotating on the heel of my foot to propel myself and ultimately hurt her more. From the pain in my arm, I've probably dislocated it.

I glare at Lyme as she finally takes in what happened. It's so quiet, you could hear a pin drop. It's not everyday someone challenges a victor, especially not someone like Lyme. But I don't care.

I say my thoughts out loud," No one gets away with pissing me off. Not even you Lyme."

Her eyes narrow towards me, " Well, duchess, here's a tip. Don't piss off a victor."

" Ha!" I laugh," Victor? You? You're the sorriest excuse for a victor if I ever saw one!" I glare into her eyes and she glares back.

" Do you want me to snap your neck, brat?" she demands, towering over me.

" Bring it, psycho," I challenge her. The Esryn girls are known for their fiery tempers.

" No one is going to be 'bringing it'," Darne, one of the Peacekeepers says, coming up to us. For a Peacekeeper, he's pretty laid back and cool with a lot. But he's at his limit when my sister and I fight. Last time I ended up with a broken arm. The time before that, she ended up with a broken nose.

" Darne, butt out," Lyme instructs, not taking her glare off of me.

" Lyme, shut up," he replies. Darne and Lyme have known each other for a long time, and one of the few times they argue is when it involves me. It's a little flattering actually. At his comment, her eyes narrow at him. " I mean it Lyme! Or do you want the Peacekeepers to get you in trouble again?"

" If I had it my way, there wouldn't be any Peacekeepers at all!" she snaps at him. I hear a breath intake from the crowd. No one ever says that. Never. It's practically suicide to say that to a Peacekeeper!

He sighs tiredly. " Just go home and do something other than beat up your little sister." I hate it when people refer to me as her little sister.

" Shut up, Darne!" we shout at him in unison.

He glares " If you two don't knock it off, I'm calling for back up. Masika, I don't think you'd really want to miss the Reaping because you're locked up in jail for disrupting the peace."

I point to Lyme. " Then get her away from me, Darne!"

He sighs again. " Whatever. Come on, Lyme," he says, taking her arm and leading her away from group of gawking teenagers and me.

" You got off easy this time, Masika!" she shouts back at me. I wait until her and Darne are out of site until I let my face show my level of discomfort. It's all I can do not to curse from the pain from my dislocated arm.

Chive rushes over. " Dislocated?" she asks.

" Just pop it back into place," I reply. She takes my arm and painfully snaps it back into place. I curse under my breath.

" Are you freaking suicidal?" she whispers harshly to me," Lyme could have killed you!"

" I don't care. I'd kill her before that happened," I mutter.

" You can be such an idiot sometimes," she sighs.

Whatever. I'm going to be the idiot who wins the seventy-fourth Hunger Games. Lyme is just going to have to deal with the fact that I didn't get myself killed off by another tribute.

Oh, sorry Lyme! Hope things are too bad because things don't go the way you planned!

**Hmm ... I don't know what inspired this. I think I just got bored and decided to play around with the idea of a Cato romance fanfiction. Meh, whatever. **

**REVIEW! **

**If I don't really like the review or if no one reviews, I'll pull the fanfiction from the site.**


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